People,Places and Things

Tuesday

Feb 19, 2013 at 6:00 AM

HEBER SPRINGS, Ark. — Perhaps there was one heartbreak too many for Mindy McCready.

The former country star apparently took her own life on Sunday at her home in Heber Springs, Ark. Authorities say McCready died of a suspected self-inflicted gunshot to the head and an autopsy is planned. She was 37 and left behind two young sons.

McCready had attempted suicide at least three times since 2005, as she struggled to cope amid a series of tumultuous public events that marked much of her adult life.

Her death comes a month after that of David Wilson, her longtime boyfriend and the father of her youngest son. He is believed to have shot himself on the same porch of the home they shared in Heber Springs, a small vacation community about 65 miles north of Little Rock. His death also was investigated as a suicide.

“Guys Do It All the Time,” a self-assured dig at male chauvinism, endeared her to female fans in 1996. She also scored a hit with “Ten Thousand Angels,” and her album of that title sold 2 million copies.

It’s unclear what circumstances led to McCready taking her own life, but it appears she was struggling again with twin issues that have persisted for years: substance abuse and the custody of her children.

She checked into court-ordered rehab and gave her children up to foster care earlier this month after her father asked a judge to intervene, saying she’d stopped taking care of herself and her sons, and that she was abusing alcohol and prescription drugs.

It’s unclear why McCready was out of rehab.

NEW YORK — Pianist Herbie Hancock will celebrate the special connection between Turkey and jazz music forged decades ago when the Turkish ambassador opened his residence to white and black musicians at a time when segregation held sway in the U.S..

Hancock, a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, is organizing a gala concert with jazz stars from around the world on April 30 at the famed Hagia Irene in the outer courtyard of Topkapi Palace in Istanbul, which has been designated the host city for the second annual U.N.-sanctioned International Jazz Day.

“There’s an amazing history of the relationship between Turkey and jazz,” Hancock told The Associated Press in a telephone interview ahead of today’s official announcement of the 2013 International Jazz Day program.

Online: www.jazzday.com and www.unesco.org/days/jazzday

PALM CITY, Fla. — Michelle Obama jokingly says a midlife crisis is what inspired her new haircut with bangs.

The first lady revealed the new hairstyle last month on her 49th birthday, which came a few days before the festivities for President Barack Obama’s second inauguration.

Mrs. Obama was asked about the new haircut during an interview with talk-show host Rachael Ray.

Said Mrs. Obama: “This is my midlife crisis,” adding that she cut her bangs because she can’t get a sports car and won’t be allowed to bungee jump.

The interview was conducted via Skype and is scheduled to air Wednesday. The Rachael Ray show released excerpts Monday.